Saturday, July 14, 2007

Rey Bucanero

Arturo García Ortiz is a Mexican professional wrestler currently working for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre under the ring name Rey Bucanero (Spanish for "Buccaneer king").

After being trained by his uncles and spending several years working undercards for independents and undercards for Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, he got his first push in late 1996 after winning the Gran Alternativa tournament with Emilio Charles, Jr. In March 1997, he won the CMLL World Trios Championship with Satánico and Emilio Charles but the group were transitional champions to take the Trios championship off the Héctor Garza, who was preparing to leave the promotion. The push quickly cooled down and Bucanero began work on World Wrestling Federation's short lived Telemundo project, Los Super Astros, without his mask and under the name "Rey 'Pirata' Ortiz."

He returned to CMLL in 1999 and feuded extensively with Olímpico and the build up pointed to a mask vs. mask match between the two. However, Bucanero teamed with Shocker, another up and coming rudo (heel), in a "Ruleta de la Muerte" tournament where the losers advance and the final losing team has to fight amongst themselves in a mask vs. mask match. Shocker and Bucanero lost in the last round and Shocker took Bucanero's mask. At this time he also started teaming with Último Guerrero and the duo were recruited by Satánico for his new stable, Los Nuevos Infernales. The team of Bucanero and Guerrero was pushed in 2000 with a tournament win for the vacant CMLL World Tag Team Championship.

In 2001, Guerrero and Bucanero turned on Satánico by costing him a match with Tarzan Boy and the trio of Guerreo, Bucanero and Tarzan starting calling themselves "Los Infernales." Satánico recruited Averno and Mephisto, two undercarders with new gimmicks, for his own Infernales group and the two groups feuded over who could use the name. Injuries kept Bucanero and Tarzan out at times so Máscara Mágica was brought in as an alternate member of the group. Bucanero's group lost a seven man cage match and they settled on the name Los Guerreros del Infierno. They spent the rest of the year feuding with Negro Casas and El Hijo del Santo over the CMLL World Tag Team Championship. After a match with an inconclusive finish in October, Los Guerreros lost to Santo and Casas on November 2.

In 2002, Guerrero and Bucanero regained their tag team titles from Santo and Casas in May. The team successfully defended their titles against Damián 666 and Halloween of La Familia de Tijuana in July. Los Guerreros spent the rest of the year feuding with Vampiro Canadiense and Shocker. Los Guerreros successfully defended their tag team titles against the duo but Bucanero lost his hair to Vampiro in a singles hair vs. hair match in December to close out the year. In 2003, they defended their titles successfully against Vampiro & Lizmark, Jr. and Negro Casas & Perro Aguayo, Jr. but were defeated in December by the team of Shocker and the newly arrived L.A. Park.

Los Guerreros regained their tag team titles in early 2004 but Bucanero suffered a knee injury and was temporarily replaced by Black Warrior. Los Guerreros lost the tag titles to Atlantis and Blue Panther on June 25. Bucanero and new Guerreros member Olímpico challenged Atlantis and Panther for the tag team titles on the first Arena México show of 2005 but they lost and Olímpico injured his neck while attempting a dive. He teamed with Guerrero in a feud with newcomer Místico and recently turned Dr. Wagner, Jr. early in the year, losing a main event tag match on March 11. In September, Bucanero and Olímpico teamed up again to unsuccessfully challenge the visiting Hiroshi Tanahashi and Shinsuke Nakamura for the IWGP World Tag Team Championship. After Atlantis turned heel and Los Guerreros became known as Los Guerreros del Atlántida, it was teased that Bucanero would break up with Guerrero but Bucanero stayed and Los Guerreros feuded with Perro Aguayo, Jr.'s Los Perros del Mal faction into 2006. At the end of April, he teamed with Tarzan Boy to win a double hair vs. hair match against Mr. Águila and Damián 666 in the main event of an Arena México show.

The following week, he teamed with Atlantis against Último Dragón and Keiji Mutoh but his team lost after Atlantis hit him by accident. For the following weeks, Bucanero kept having trouble with his teammates and magazines hinted at a possible face turn. Later that month, Averno and Mephisto turned on him during an Arena México match. Shortly afterwards, Tarzan Boy and Guerrero turned on him as well, ripping his tights, signifying he was no longer a member of Los Guerreros. On July 14, he defeated Guerrero for his CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship, ending Guerrero's three and a half year title reign. Actually, he is teaming with Dos Caras jr. and Hijo de Lizmark as a tecnico; he has a notorious feud with Kenzo Suzuki and Ultimo Guerrero.

Outside of Lucha Libre, he has also worked in Japan for New Japan Pro Wrestling, Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling, Toryumon and Dragondoor.